A–Z Glossary

Drowning

Drowning is a life-threatening event that can occur when a person cannot keep their airway above water, even in shallow water.

← Back to A–Z Glossary

Search results for: Drowning

Preparing for accidents at home

Preparing for accidents at home

Start with a realistic home risk assessment Accident preparation begins with observing the home as it is actually used, not as it looks after a tidy-up. Walk through each room at different times of day and consider what could happen while carrying a baby, preparing food, bathing, answering the door, or managing fatigue. Notice poor […]

Water Play for Sensory Exploration

Water Play for Sensory Exploration

Why Water Is a Rich Sensory Medium Water is unusually responsive to a baby’s actions. A hand moving through it produces resistance, ripples, sound, droplets, and visible motion at the same time. This gives infants repeated opportunities to notice a basic cause-and-effect relationship: a reach, kick, squeeze, or splash changes what they see and hear. […]

Childproofing and preventing accidents at home children

Childproofing and preventing accidents at home children

Begin with developmental risk assessment Safety planning should follow what a child can do now and what they are likely to do next. Infants may roll, crawl, and pull to stand before caregivers have adjusted the environment. Toddlers can climb, drag chairs, open low cabinets, and move rapidly toward hazards. Preschool children may understand simple […]

Bath safety and supervising children around water

Bath safety and supervising children around water

Why children need close supervision around water Drowning is the process of experiencing respiratory impairment from submersion or immersion in liquid. It may occur in a bathtub, toilet, bucket, paddling pool, swimming pool, pond, or natural body of water. The World Health Organization identifies children as a higher-risk group, particularly when they are near water […]

Water safety mistakes parents make

Water safety mistakes parents make

Mistake 1: Treating swimming lessons as complete protection Formal lessons can improve water competency, but they do not eliminate drowning risk. A child’s ability may vary with fatigue, illness, water temperature, clothing, currents, unfamiliar surroundings, or the distance to safety. Even a child who swims confidently in a supervised lesson may panic after an unexpected […]